The primary goal
of Intercultura is to teach you the Spanish language in a warm
yet intellectually challenging environment. Classes at our
city and beach campuses are conducted entirely in Spanish,
providing students from all over the world with a complete and
intensive learning experience. Our professors have advanced
university degrees and teaching certification, and we are
accredited through the US university system, offering
undergraduate credit to those interested. In addition, you
have the opportunity to come to know Costa Rica, its
traditions and its rich cultural heritage by participating in
our daily cultural and extracurricular activities.

On a larger scale, we hope to promote global
awareness and tolerance through this sharing of cultures. We
believe that participation in programs such as this one teach
not only a new language, but also effective tools for
communication and understanding in the constantly evolving
world culture in which we live.

Intercultura's
Spanish program uses a combination of immersion teaching
methods centered around the Communicative Approach. Our
aim is to enable students to really express themselves
in the language. Instead of a traditional grammar
program, classes are designed to provide balance between
theory and practice. The course incorporates all aspects
of language acquisition: conversation, grammar, reading,
listening, writing, general comprehension and idiomatic
expressions. In addition to formal textbooks, we use a
wide variety of current materials: newspapers,
literature, audio-cassettes, videos, advertisements,
music, short stories and more. Classes also incorporate
field-trips and out-of-class learning experiences by
taking students to practice their Spanish in
marketplaces, museums, buses, restaurants, and other
areas where communication practice is a necessity. Thus
classes remain interesting as well as educational!

Our core Spanish program consists of twelve
different levels, from complete beginner through advanced.
After these have been completed, students continue with six
additional levels of high-advanced to superior level Spanish,
which develop upon the literature used in lower levels and
intensify work towards full proficiency in the various areas
of language acquisition. Also covered at these levels are
complex field projects, current events, linguistics, regional
language usages and Costa Rican history. In addition, we have
specialized courses for those who wish to study specific
topics such as business, medical or media Spanish.

" In my role as a trainer of teachers, I am
keenly aware of what constitutes effective instruction...[and]
as an educator, I recognized and experienced first-hand the
excellence of Marcelo's instruction.....[He] has the ability
to explain grammatical concepts with great clarity...he
constructed excellent visuals which helped me comprehend and
use the new learning. Equally effective was his insistence
that all newly learned grammar be applied in
conversation....It is my belief that [he] is an outstanding
instructor, one of the finest I have encountered in my work as
an educator."

-- Marc Becker, PhD, Director of high-school
district Research and Assessment.